


Forever Home

by beta_cygni



Series: Forever Home [1]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Fluff, Fluffy as hell, Hybrids, Kid Loki and Kid Thor, M/M, Pets, Thor finds stray Loki
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-09
Updated: 2016-08-09
Packaged: 2018-08-07 15:29:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7720099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beta_cygni/pseuds/beta_cygni
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Little Labrathor finds stray Lokitty. </p><p>Super self-indulgent piece of fluff that's been floating in my head since I did <a href="http://lunariagold.tumblr.com/post/141906557064/labrathor-finds-stray-lokitty-to-be-continued">this drawing</a></p><p>There is abuse of exclamation points because Thor is a dog! And that's how they speak!! ;)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Forever Home

It was a glorious summer day. Thor was enjoying the late afternoon sun, letting the pleasant breeze mess freely with his floppy, golden ears and hair. The vibrant Labrador Retriever hybrid boy alternated between padding and running along the sidewalk of the bustling street, bordered by small stores and cafés. The scents and sounds of delicious foods and happy people drifted all around, filling Thor's head with glee and making his tail swish wildly. Thor _loved_ people; _and_ summer.

He had been wearing his 'P-Level' Registered Hybrid badge pinned to his shirt for three weeks already, indicating he had reached the required age and training level to wander the neighbourhood unsupervised. He was still ebullient with the feelings of freedom and recognition. It was _the best thing ever_.

He had grabbed a few items his ‘mother’, Frigga (a non-hybrid), had requested from the grocer, and had almost an hour left before curfew. He had already checked to see whether Steve, another young Lab hybrid neighbour, was home to play without luck. Thor was next planning to enjoy a run- and perhaps a roll in the grass- through the lush park on his way home when a shrill noise from an alley made his ears perk up.

It was alarming; definitely hostile.

Thor felt his hairs stand on end as he stalked towards the narrow backstreet. He instinctively growled as he saw a large, older hybrid, a feline, march out of the alley with a small, tattered paper package- Thor caught a whiff of fried food- clutched in his large hands. As soon as the large cat was out of sight, Thor peered into the alley. It was dim and quiet, but Thor could still sense a presence there.

After a moment, there was a faint rustling as something shifted behind a trash can. Thor craned his neck and took a couple of careful steps towards it before a head poked out of the shadows. It was a small boy, like Thor, though his ears were two perfect points of black velvet stuck high on his mane of equally dark hair; a cat hybrid.

"Hey!" Thor said, both in greeting and surprise.

The boy-cat kept staring. Despite his jet hair, his face was milky-pale. It looked like a small moon in the gloom of the alley; a moon with a straight little nose, green eyes and a thin, suspicious pink line of a mouth. Very slowly, he began stepping away, his wide eyes never leaving Thor.

"Oh!" Thor exclaimed, making the boy flinch, "Did that big jerk steal your stuff? Was that, like, _your_ food?"

Thor didn't understand why the cat wouldn't reply. As the dark-haired boy got further from the trash can, Thor noticed the worn, stained t-shirt and sweatpants he was wearing. Also, the cat was not wearing a P-Level badge.

"Hey, how come you're alone? D'you have a badge? _Oh no_ ... Are you _alone_ alone??" Thor spoke louder, walking closer to the little cat, thinking he was perhaps hard of hearing. The cat sprang back, his black tail now visible, sticking straight up and bushy. Thor vaguely recalled that this was not a good thing, for cats; he realized with dismay that the boy was scared.

"Oh! Don't worry. I'm Thor." Thor extended a hand but the cat suddenly bolted down the alley. Thor's every senses sprang to life and before he knew it he was chasing after him.

"WAIT!!" He implored, as the cat was better at jumping over the debris cluttering the ground and rapidly gaining distance, "I can... I can come back with my mom!... She’ll know what to do! We'll help you, okay?? My name's Thor!!"

Thor caught a last sight of the quick little shadow scaling an emergency exit ladder and taking refuge somewhere high up. Then Thor turned and bounded back out of the alley, tearing through the neighbourhood towards his home as fast as his legs- which had grown longer, ungainly so, this summer- could manage.

At last, he crashed through the front door, seeking out Frigga with frantic yelps.

"Mom! Mom?? MOOOOOMM..."

Within seconds she came downstairs, eyebrow cocked.

"Goodness, Thor. Calm down. Are the squirrels raiding again?"

" _Mom_ ..." Thor continued unabashed, wheezing every word through his laboured breathing "There's a _cat_ ... But he's in this alley... And it's a little _boy_ ; except- well- a _cat_ ... And he's all alone and has no _badge_ and he's hungry... And this big mean cat stole his food... but then he ran away and..."

" _Thor_. Sweetheart, slow down a bit. You say you saw a... stray cat? A hybrid?"

Thor's ears perked up.

"Yeah! C'mon! We need to go find him... I'll show you..."

"Okay, well; let me call the hybrid protection department first. Can you tell them where you saw him?"

"What? Nooooo!" Thor whined.

"But sweetie, they know what to do in case of..."

Thor grabbed Frigga's hand, trying to pull her towards the door.

"Don't call the stupid department. **_I_ ** found him." Thor realized that this wasn't the choicest argument so he added substance to it "Plus I told him we'd come back for him... It's a _promise_ , right? Can't go back on a _promise_ ! And you like _cats_ too, right? Didn't you say you might get a kitten? He's _little_ \- and kinda free, I guess..."

Frigga sighed. Thor saw cracks forming in her veneer.

"Come _oooon_ ... The department will just take him away, and maybe find people he won't even like... That would suck so... _Pleeeaaasse_??

"What makes you think he'll like _us_?" Frigga asked with a smirk.

Thor gaped in disbelief, as if she had uttered something obscene. Frigga ran a harried hand through her thick, flaxen hair brushed with silver.

"Okay, just... give me a minute to think. Are you _sure_ he was a stray?"

"Yes! He was all alone, and in crappy clothes; and this nasty other cat stole his _food_ and..."

"Alright," Frigga cut before pondering, "Well, no guarantees that this will work but we can go have a look..." She trailed off as she walked to the kitchen, Thor close on her heels.

As Thor saw her drop various food items into a plastic bag- a can of tuna, a wrapped ice cream bar, a packet of mini-beef jerkies- he understood that a rescue mission was fully under way.

"Ooh!" He exclaimed before racing around the kitchen to 'help' with the selection, " You're _the best mom ever_ ; in _the whole world_..."

He retrieved the 1lb bag of his favourite _Super Nibbly’z_ from the pantry but Frigga objected:

"He's a _cat;_ he doesn't need those."

"But they're _the best ever_ ; and I _love_ them... Maybe he'll like them too."

Frigga rolled her eyes and tossed him a little storage baggie.

"Fine; but just a _handful_ , please. I'll grab the first-aid kit just in case... Can you go wait for me in the car?"

When Frigga emerged from the house and locked the door, Thor was already buckled in the front seat, window fully rolled down and crunching on a few _Super Nibbly’z_ \- but not too many because they _were_ for the cat-boy. His legs were rapidly bouncing up and down, a tick he had when he was excited but seated in a way that impeded his tail. Frigga shook her head slightly as she took seat behind the wheel.

"Here we go then. Where did you see him?"

"It was in a backstreet on Third Avenue... near… uh, Fletcher's Newsstand." Thor indicated as they drove around.

Frigga parked the car at the designated spot across the alley's entrance. As she walked towards the dark street, Thor rushed past her but she called him back firmly:

" _Thor_."

He stopped in his tracks and turned to her.

"Sweetie, I know you're excited. But it would be best if you'd wait in the car. You can leave the door open..."

"What? But..."

"He's already on-edge and you're bigger than him, and noisy; and a _dog_..."

Thor's ears drooped at the suggestion that these attributes could be less than exemplary.

"Look, it's possible he's had prior experiences with dogs. _Bad_ ones..." Frigga explained.

At that, Thor looked downright wounded, emitting a tiny whine as he mournfully stepped back towards the car. It wasn't right; _he_ was good. Why was there even such a stupid thing as _bad dogs_? It was so unfair; a few nasty idiots making all dogs look bad. Thor kept peering at Frigga's progress from his seat, desperately hoping that the black-haired boy didn’t have some personal vendetta against dogs.

"Hello? _Kitty_ , _kitty_ ; are you there?" Frigga called softly as she slowly entered the alley, "My boy saw you earlier and said you might be hungry..."

She pulled the few items out of the plastic bag she'd brought and waved them around.

"I have some tuna, if you’d like. Or do you prefer ice cream?"

Frigga had begun worrying she was only speaking to the dingy brick walls when she spotted motion behind the trash bin. A black ear and quarter of a pale face were inching out. She smiled at the cat.

"Oh, there you are. Poor little guy, you’re alone out here?" She cooed as she engaged full-force _mothering_ mode, "Don't be scared; want to come have a look?"

"You're that dog's... _mom_?" The boy asked.

"Yes; he told me you were all alone. Is that right?"

The cat offered a brooding shrug as a response.

"Now, you know you're not supposed to be all by yourself out here. It's very dangerous, I'm sure you’ve realized..."

"I don't want to go back to my old house. I'm _fine_."

"I won't call anyone if you don't want me to. Do you have a name, sweetheart?"

The boy threw one more chary glance at her before deciding that the ice cream was worth investigating.

"Loki."

He took a few steps towards the treat Frigga was extending. She let him grab the cold plastic package and inspect it before she continued.

"Now, Loki; I am not a big fan of the idea of leaving you all by yourself on the street. It's going to rain tonight, too..." She didn't miss the faint grimace at the mention of rain; the desired effect, "How about this; you come home with me for the night, you can have your ice cream- and a nice dinner and bed, _indoors..."_

"And you won't call anybody on me?" Loki frowned.

"I promise."

"And... Will I be able to leave... later?"

"Yes. But you have to stay for at least a full day; deal?"

In truth, Frigga had no real intention of letting Loki return to the street, but she had faith in the persuasive power of a warm home and good care. Therefore she felt slightly less guilt at feigning absolute earnestness. To her relief, Loki's own deliberation was short, though he tried his best to appear disinterested.

"Okay..." He shrugged.

Thor had scarcely blinked since Frigga had walked out of sight. His immediate impulse when he saw her emerge with Loki was to jump off the passenger seat to his feet onto the sidewalk. Loki froze and Frigga shot him a warning glance. With begrudging restraint, Thor hopped back onto the seat and shut his door- though he still hung his head halfway out the window, his blue eyes nearly popping out of his rosy face as he grinned.

"It's alright, Loki. Thor is just... _enthusiastic_ . But he is a _nice_ dog and was very worried about you getting hurt."

Loki was more shy than scared when he partially hid behind Frigga as she opened the door to the backseat for him. He slinked in and took the seat behind Thor’s, letting Frigga buckle his seat belt.

Within seconds of Frigga starting the car, Thor popped his head around the seat to peek at Loki.

"Hi!! Your name is Loki? I'm Thor!"

"I know." Loki said quietly, looking down as his attention returned to the ice cream bar he was clutching. The wrapping crinkled as he handled it.

"I can open it for you!" Thor offered, but Loki deftly pinched the wrapping between his fingers, slowly tearing one end open until he could expose an edge of the ice cream bar.

He was so delicate and careful at it, Thor observed. No wonder jerks could steal his food if he didn't eat faster.

Loki closely examined the dessert for several seconds before gingerly touching it with the very tip of his tongue. He then made little smacking sounds as he sampled the flavour, eyes narrowed in concentration. Thor watched, holding his breath, the scene feeling like one of those films Frigga enjoyed, where people did next to nothing in complete silence nearly the whole time, yet it was somehow very intense and stressful.

He jolted when Loki finally tore a chunk off the treat with sharp little teeth.

“Is it good?? Do you like it? Oh, _wait_ …” Thor briefly vanished before popping around again and shoving his _Super Nibbly’z_ baggie towards Loki.

“Try these with it!” He suggested.

“Um…” Loki reluctantly reached into the bag and pulled a single morsel between two fingers. As he sniffed it with skepticism, Thor piped:

“Hey, can I try a bit of ice cream?”

“ _Thor_. Let him eat in peace, will you?” Frigga reproved.

“You can have this…” Loki said, handing back the _Nibbly’z,_ which Thor grabbed happily.

“Thanks!”

They stared at each other silently, aside from Thor’s crunching.

  
****

 

The sun had set by the time they arrived at the house. Frigga opted to allow dinner before a much needed bath- though she insisted on a good hand scouring.

Thor’s reaction to the bowl of thick, brown stew heaping with cubes of meat was as celebratory as expected. Even Loki’s face brightened noticeably, his jaw dropping open as he seemed momentarily lost in the savoury scent, prompting an affectionate look from Frigga.

“ _Eat_ , sweetie. There is plenty if you want more, too.”

There were no dainty, experimental bites this time. Loki stalked and murdered the beef cubes with his fork in true apex-predator fashion, as Thor observed approvingly.

“V’ast’ good,” He encouraged between chews, “‘f you eat faft enouth, pheople know if’ts _your_ food… ‘ike _fthis..._ ” He crammed another bite into his full mouth, growling around it.

“Table manners please,” Frigga sighed, “The law around here isn’t _survival of the sloppiest_.”

After emptying his bowl, Loki produced his first grin, sinking lazily back into his chair. Thor, equally sated, let out a yawn, which Loki mirrored until they both seemed to have had agreed to an unofficial competition for widest maw.

“Well, time for a bath; getting all nice and clean and ready for bed. Yes?”

 Loki’s mouth shut with a snap, all trace of smile lost.

 ****

 

“Don’t splash me!” Loki shrieked, shielding himself with his arms.

“Oh, sorry.”

Though he stopped spraying water on purpose, Thor’s joyful diving for sunken toys in the deep bathtub sloshed the water around enough that Loki still had to dodge waves of soapy foam. He had reluctantly cooperated by getting into the bath without too much of a fuss- aside from insisting on a temperature change three times- yet he remained standing, gingerly wiping at his skin while avoiding a proper soak.  

Eventually, he began shivering and attempted clawing his way out of the tub.

“You’re done already?” Thor asked with dismay.

Frigga, who had returned to the bathroom, objected:

“Not so fast, sweetheart: Your hair is a disaster…”

Loki’s eyes became very round as Frigga squirted some shampoo in her hand and reached for a cup on the counter..

“Uh… It’s okay, I’m clean now…”

“I’m sorry. But it will be quick and you’ll feel much better. Now just hold your head back…”

Loki was about to further protest when Frigga upended the cup full of water above his head. Since he hadn’t tilted it as requested, he spat and hacked madly as water poured down his face.

“Ack!! Stop!!” He yelled, his thrashing putting Thor’s earlier waves to shame.  

Years of dealing with a lively puppy had paid off as Frigga managed the olympian task of securing the ornery kitten in the water while soaping his hair. However her efforts failed during the rinse cycle when Loki sprang out of her grip and took hold of the shower curtain.

Even though Thor felt a measure of solicitude for Frigga’s battle, he couldn’t deny that Loki was _awesome_ and quite possibly magical. There was no other way to explain the way he expertly scaled the curtain up to the rod, like a seasoned lookout climbing the mast, then launched himself into a triple-salchow to keep clear of Frigga's frantic arms. He landed perfectly- though skidded a distance on the wet floor- and leapt for the open doorway.

Once he saw Loki’s scraggly-wet tail disappear out the door, Thor’s every nerves fired-up. He jumped to his feet because it was clearly time for an epic game of _tag!_

"DON'T you even think about it!"

Thor crouched back down sheepishly into the bath at Frigga’s order.

“That went about as well as expected…” She mumbled as she quickly wiped the floor tiles with a towel, “There is no telling where he’s hiding now.”

“I can help find him!” Thor offered. Hide-and-seek was every bit as fun as tag.

“You have yet to experience searching for a cat who doesn’t want to be found.” Frigga explained as she helped Thor exit the bath with minimal flooding.

As Thor finished pulling his favourite red pajamas on, he raced down the stairs to join Frigga who was entreating an invisible Loki. She held a pair of pajama pants and a fleecy little bathrobe, a green one, that Thor had received as a gift though it had been too small.

“I have _water_ in my ears!!” Loki yowled.

“You can be all snug and ready for a good night’s sleep if you just come out.”

“I’ll _never_ be dry or warm again!!”

His voice was relatively close and slightly muffled. Thor peered around the living room but, like Frigga, failed to locate Loki. The liberal amount of soap in the bath had dulled his ability to trace anything by scent.

“Well getting dressed would certainly help; look what I have here...”

“Go away!”

Thor gazed up anxiously at Frigga who responded with a resigned shrug. She placed the clothes well in sight on an armchair.

“It is getting late and high time for bed. Loki, would you _please_ come upstairs with us?”

Loki’s reply was a long keen.

As Frigga ushered him towards the stairs, Thor’s ears were quirking with concern.  
  
“Is he okay? Why doesn’t he want to come with us?”

“It takes cats a little while to get used to new people.”

“But… _I’m_ not new people; he _knows_ me.”

Frigga ignored this: She knew from experience that the notion of relationship foundation requiring more than five minutes and a sniff was lost on dogs.

In his room, Thor stared at the bedding that Frigga had improvised for Loki across from his own before turning desolate eyes up to her:

“He doesn’t like me?”

“Oh, sweetie…” She scooped her boy into a hug, “It’s not _that_ . He probably resents _me_ for the wash; at least until morning. He simply needs more time to adjust. It is quite normal and not at all your fault.”

Thor quietly let Frigga tuck him into his blankets and soothingly stroke his head before bidding him a good night.

However, as soon as he heard that Frigga had settled in her room for a bit of reading before sleep, Thor snuck out of his own and tiptoed to the stairs where he listened for any movement. The house was completely quiet and still. He slowly crept down the steps, then to the living room where it was assumed that Loki was still in hiding. The clothing remained untouched on the armchair.

“Don’t worry,” Thor whispered, “I’m here just in case... I mean, **_I_ ** would be kinda scared all alone…”

There was no response. Thor hesitated before settling himself on the sofa.

Silence and fatigue weighed on him as he slowly sank into the cushions, his eyes blinking away the urge to sleep. Eventually, he curled up onto his side, just to rest his head a bit.

****

Thor couldn’t tell how long he had been dozing when a light noise stirred him. He immediately glanced towards the armchair. Instead of the folded clothes, he saw Loki sitting in the faint glow of the street light coming from the window, pristine in his new pajamas and robe. Loki’s ears twitched back when he saw Thor awake and he glanced away nervously.

“Hi.” He mumbled.

“Hi!” Thor beamed. He didn’t leave his own spot, wary of spooking Loki, but he knelt up on the sofa, leaving his tail free to swish about.

“So… are you dry now?”

“Yeah…” Loki answered with a sulky shrug.

“Good! Do you like it here now?” Thor asked expectantly.

Loki glanced at him and shuffled a little in his seat.

“I dunno…”

“If you stay, we’ll be _brothers_.” Thor said cocking his head with pleading eyes. Loki’s eyebrows shot up, then he frowned.

“We can’t be brothers: You’re a _dog_ ; I’m a _cat.”_ He pointed out.

“Doesn’t matter. We have the same mom now. That means we’re brothers.”

Loki blinked a few times, unable to readily contradict this logic. Pensive, he began running his fingers through his hair in an effort to groom it. It looked soft and glossy now, however several strands had dried at odd angles and were curling up.

“I’ll be right back.” Thor said as he jumped off his seat.

When he returned, he saw that Loki had moved to the sofa and was wearily rubbing his eyes. Loki stiffened when Thor bounced next to him and triumphantly waved a large hairbrush.

“It’s mine but you can use it: It’s really nice and scratchy!”

Loki scrambled as far back as the armrest would allow as Thor began clumsily untangling his hair.

“Ugh, I really don’t… _Oooh_ …”

As Thor reached a spot behind his left ear, Loki’s squirming suddenly stopped. He cocked his head so that the bristles could better reach tricky knots. Soon he was slumping drowsily. They sat in silence while Thor applied himself with the brush until he became aware of a subtle rumbling.

It was a curiously delightful noise, like a toy engine enclosed in a small tin box; and it was coming from Loki. It was a special sound of _happy_ , of _friend_ ; of _family_.

It was _the best thing ever_.

  
  
  



End file.
